We're pleased to announce the arrival of 400+ Tips for Organic Gardening Success: A Decade of Tricks, Tools, Recipes, and Resources from Gardenerd.com. It's been ten years in the making and we're launching it on June 20th, just in time for Summer Solstice. Many of you have read our Tip of the Week on the website, and listened to the Gardenerd Tip of the Week Podcast. Each week we list a helpful link to more information about that week's tip.…
The Spirit of Stone by Jan Johnsen takes a look at stone from both the aesthetic and functional perspective. The author uses her own 30+ years of experience in landscaping to share hardscape ideas for home gardeners. Boulders can be used as decorative accents, flagstone as pathways, and gravel as a zen garden. But before Johnsen gets to any of that, she explores an almost spiritual connection with stone. Chapter 1 reads like a satisfying interview, tying details to ancient…
An author must support her fellow wordsmiths, especially when a book takes 7 years to produce from concept to publication. Rachel Surls, of UC Cooperative Extensions' Master Gardener program, and Judith Gerber, a friend in the LA garden scene and author of Farming in Torrance and the South Bay, have painstakingly researched and documented the history of agriculture in Los Angeles in their new book, From Cows to Concrete: The Rise and Fall of Farming in Los Angeles. I had…
Scott Daigre began his tomato passion at Hortus Nursery back in the day, when gardeners would flock to Hortus's annual Tomatomania seedling sale. Once Hortus closed its doors, Scott took on the task of continuing the tradition, offering heirloom and hybrid tomato seedlings at Tomatomania events all over Southern California. Now Tomatomania is on the East Coast as well, and Scott has a new book to share with tomato lovers all over the world. TOMATOMANIA, A Fresh Approach to Celebrating…
One of my students from the Gardenerd Organic Gardening Series sent me this article that appeared in the LA Times last Thursday. It thought I
would share it with you here. It's a great story with how-to instructions for building no-dig soil and raised beds (without borders). There is also information about a
farm exchange program where you can learn a lot by volunteering on a farm.
Warning: This blog entry is a pure, unadulterated display of Gardenerdiness.
Tonight I satisfied a desire I've had for years - to garden in the dark, after the sun has completely set. It's a desire I've never been able to indulge in because my gardening space, the community garden, closes at sunset. Now that I am a homeowner, the world is my oyster, so to speak, as far as living out my nighttime gardening fantasies. Now, I'm not talking about gardening outside where it's well-lit. I'm talking about piercing the night's dark shroud with good old fashioned geek gear - a head ...